Billion dollar Vikings stadium still not for the birds

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Bird lovers launched a last-ditch drive at Friday’s Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority meeting to protect migratory species from what they consider a killer Minnesota Vikings football stadium being built with $500 million in taxpayer funding.

The Minnesota Citizens for the Protection of Migratory Birds went to the top of the political pecking order, calling on Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton to fire MSFA chairwoman Michele Kelm-Helgen.

“The MSFA and the Vikings leveraging their power to make choices, which insult the values of the people who are paying for it, is an outstanding example of a corrupt system in which the desires of just a few individuals can override the desires and values of many thousands more,” said Wendy Hann, a member of the citizens group in addressing MSFA board members Monday.

One of Dayton’s closest allies, Kelm-Helgen has refused to push for bird-friendly fritted glass at a cost of $1 million, one-tenth of one percent of the project’s $1 billion budget.

“It is the board’s responsibility to look out for the interests of the public and make responsible choices. This means balancing budgets, design, construction, access, and impacts on the environment and neighborhood to finish the project in July of 2016,” the MSFA said in an emailed statement.